Philae comet probe may have bounced after landing - CNN.com 1 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Philae is wedged in a dark corner of Rosetta – "We are so happy to have finally imaged Philae, and to see it in such amazing detail," says Cecilia Tubiana of the OSIRIS camera team. She was the first person to see the images when they were downlinked from the Rosetta probe, according to the European Space Agency. Hide Caption 2 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Philae found using images from Rosetta – The image is detailed enough that viewers can pick out features of Philae's 3-foot-wide (1 meter) body. Even two of its three legs can be seen. Hide Caption 3 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser One of the primary objectives of the Rosetta mission was to drop the Philae lander onto the comet. The probe was successfully deployed in November 2014, becoming the first probe to land on a comet. But Philae failed to grab onto the comet and bounced around. It fell silent a few days later.

Then on June 13, 2015, Philae came out of hibernation and "spoke" to mission managers at the European Space Agency for 85 seconds. This photo above was taken by the lander's mothership, the Rosetta orbiter, after the lander started its descent to the comet. Hide Caption 4 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The Rosetta spacecraft captured this image of a jet of white debris spraying from Comet 67P/Churyumov--Gerasimenko on July 29, 2015. Mission scientists said this was the brightest jet seen to date in the mission. The debris is mostly of ice coated with dark organic material. Hide Caption 5 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was taken by Rosetta on July 8, 2015 as the spacecraft and comet headed toward their closest approach to the sun. Rosetta was about 125 miles (201 kilometers) from the comet when it took this image.

Hide Caption 6 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Philae wakes up! Mission managers posted this cartoon of the lander yawning after it came out of hibernation on June 13, 2015. They also sent a series of tweets between the lander and its mothership, Rosetta. Hide Caption 7 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is a Jupiter-family comet. Its 6.5 year journey around the Sun takes it from just beyond the orbit of Jupiter at its most distant, to between the orbits of Earth and Mars at its closest. The comet hails from the Kuiper Belt, but gravitational perturbations knocked it towards the Sun where interactions with Jupiter's gravity set it on its present-day orbit. Hide Caption 8 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was taken by Rosetta on June 5, 2015, while the spacecraft was about 129 miles (208 kilometers) from the comet's center.

Hide Caption Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta's navigation camera took this image of the comet on June 1, 2015. Hide Caption 10 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The Rosetta Mission is tracking Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on its orbit around the sun. This image was taken on May 3, 2015 at a distance of about 84 miles (135 km) from the comet's center. Hide Caption Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was taken on April 15, 2015. Hide Caption 12 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta snapped this wide-angle view of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in September 2014. Rosetta was about 107 million miles (172 million kilometers) from Earth and about 92 million miles (148 million kilometers) from the sun when the photo was released.

Hide Caption 13 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser A camera on Rosetta took this picture of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on November 22, 2014, from a distance of about 19 miles (31 kilometers). The nucleus is deliberately overexposed to reveal jets of material spewing from the comet. The 2.5-mile-wide (4-kilometer) comet has shown a big increase in the amount of water its releasing, according to NASA. The space agency says about 40 ounces (1.2 liters) of water was being sprayed into space every second at the end of August 2014. Hide Caption 14 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta took this picture of a section of the comet's two lobes from a distance of about 5 miles (8 kilometers) on October 14, 2014.

Hide Caption 15 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The Rosetta spacecraft's Philae lander is shown sitting on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko after becoming the first space probe to land on a comet on November 12, 2014. The probe's harpoons failed to fire, and Philae bounced a few times. The lander was able to send back images and data for 57 hours before losing power. Hide Caption 16 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta's lander, Philae, wasn't able to get a good grip on the comet after it touched down. This mosaic shows Philae's movements as it bounced across the comet. Hide Caption 17 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Philae snapped these images after landing, and mission scientists used them to create a panoramic view of the landing site. A graphic shows where the probe would be sitting in the photograph.

Hide Caption 18 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The image of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was taken by a camera on the Philae lander during its descent to the comet on November 12, 2014. The lander was about 1.9 miles (3 kilometers) from the surface at the time. Philae touched down on the comet about seven hours later. Hide Caption Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta's OSIRIS camera captured this parting shot of the Philae lander after separation. Hide Caption 20 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta's lander Philae took this parting shot of its mother ship shortly after separation on November 12, 2014, as Philae headed for a landing on Comet 67P. While Philae is the first probe to land on a comet , Rosetta is the first to rendezvous with a comet and follow it around the sun.

Hide Caption 21 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This mosaic is made of four individual images taken about 20 miles (31.8 kilometers ) from the center of the comet on November 4, 2014. Hide Caption 22 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta took this image of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on September 15, 2014. The box on the right shows where the lander was expected to touch down. Hide Caption 23 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The spacecraft sent this image as it approached the comet on August 6, 2014. From a distance of nearly 81 miles (130 kilometers), it reveals detail of the smooth region on the comet's "body" section. Hide Caption 24 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image, captured August 7, 2014, shows the diversity of surface structures on the comet's nucleus.

Hide Caption 25 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser The comet's "head" can be seen in the left of the frame as it casts a shadow over the "body" in this image released August 6, 2014. Hide Caption 26 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image of the comet was taken on August 1, 2014, as Rosetta closed in its target. Hide Caption 27 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta's mission started on March 2, 2004, when it was launched on a European Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana. Hide Caption 28 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta is named after the Rosetta Stone, the black basalt that provided the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs. Scientists think the mission will give them new clues about the origins of the solar system and life on Earth. The mission is spearheaded by the European Space Agency with key support from NASA.

Hide Caption 29 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This photo shows Rosetta being tested before it was wrapped in insulating blankets and loaded on a rocket for launch. Hide Caption 30 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta has massive solar wings to power the spacecraft. They were unfurled and checked out at the European Space Agency's test facilities before being packed up for liftoff. Hide Caption 31 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser After its closest approach to Earth in November 2007, Rosetta captured this image of the planet. Hide Caption 32 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta snapped this image of Earth in November 2009. The spacecraft was 393,328 miles from Earth. Hide Caption 33 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta passed asteroid Steins in September 2008, giving scientists amazing close-ups of the asteroid's huge crater. The asteroid is about 3 miles in diameter.

Hide Caption Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Rosetta took this image of Mars as it looped through the solar system. Hide Caption 35 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser This image was taken by an instrument on Rosetta's Philae lander just minutes before the spacecraft made its closest approach to Mars. Part of Rosetta and its solar arrays are visible. Hide Caption 36 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser On July 10, 2010, Rosetta flew about 1,864 miles from asteroid Lutetia, which is 10 times larger than asteroid Steins. Hide Caption 37 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser Look closely at the top of this picture. See that dot? That's Saturn. Rosetta snapped the picture of asteroid Lutetia and captured Saturn in the background. Hide Caption 38 of 39 Photos: Rosetta: The comet chaser After taking pictures of Earth, Mars and asteroids, Rosetta was put into hibernation in May 2011 after it reached the outer part of the solar system.

Mission managers woke it January 20, 2014. Hide Caption On Comet 67P, Philae conks out, as battery dies - CNN.com NEW: Philae's operators satisfied that the probe completed its mission on the comet Philae's landing didn't go as planned, leaving it in the shade, ESA says It is supposed to run on solar power, but now there's not enough sunlight for that Philae's primary battery was running out and is expected to be dead (CNN) -- After an improbable 10-year, 310-million-mile journey to become the first ever space vehicle to make a soft landing on a comet, the Philae probe may have ended its mission prematurely. Its batteries have run down, said the European Space Agency . "Philae has fallen into 'idle mode' for a potentially long silence. In this mode, all instruments and most systems on board are shut down," ESA said. This might not change. Philae was supposed to transmit data from Comet 67/P for nine months as it passed the sun, running on solar power, but it did not get its place in the sunlight that scientists had hoped for.

How Rosetta lands on the comet How Rosetta lands on the comet How Rosetta lands on the comet How Rosetta lands on the comet How Rosetta lands on the comet HIDE CAPTION How Rosetta lands on the comet Bounce landing The probe's landing didn't go as planned this week, after Philae detached from the Rosetta orbiter. It took two bounces away from its designated landing spot, and never fired its anchoring harpoon. "The lander remains unanchored to the surface at an as yet undetermined orientation," ESA said. Rosetta's lander Philae is on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on Thursday, November 13, and sending back images. One of the lander's three feet can be seen in the foreground. While Philae is the first probe to land on a comet, Rosetta is the first to rendezvous with a comet and follow it around the sun. The information collected by Philae at one location on the surface will complement that collected by the Rosetta orbiter for the entire comet.

Rosetta's lander Philae captured this image during its descent to the comet from a distance of 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from the surface on Wednesday, November 12. Philae took this parting shot of its mother ship shortly after separation on November 12, as Philae headed for a landing on Comet 67P. The lander touched down on the comet seven hours after separating from the orbiter. Rosetta's OSIRIS camera captured this parting shot of the Philae lander after separation. This mosaic is made of four individual images taken 31.8 kilometers (about 20 miles) from the center of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on November 4. Rosetta took this image of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on September 15. The box on the right shows where the lander will touch down. The spacecraft sent this image as it approached the comet on August 6. From a distance of 130 kilometers (nearly 81 miles), it reveals detail of the smooth region on the comet's "body" section.

This image, captured August 7, shows the diversity of surface structures on the comet's nucleus. The comet's "head" can be seen in the left of the frame as it casts a shadow over the "body" in this image released August 6. This image of the comet was taken on August 1. Rosetta's mission started on March 2, 2004, when it was launched on a European Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana. Rosetta is named after the Rosetta Stone, the black basalt that provided the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs. Scientists think the mission will give them new clues about the origins of the solar system and life on Earth. The mission is spearheaded by the European Space Agency with key support from NASA. This photo shows Rosetta being tested before it was wrapped in insulating blankets and loaded on a rocket for launch. Rosetta has massive solar wings to power the spacecraft. They were unfurled and checked out at the European Space Agency's test facilities before being packed up for liftoff. After its closest approach to Earth in November 2007, Rosetta captured this image of the planet.

Rosetta snapped this image of Earth in November 2009. The spacecraft was 393,328 miles from Earth. Rosetta passed asteroid Steins in September 2008, giving scientists amazing close-ups of the asteroid's huge crater. The asteroid is about 3 miles in diameter. Rosetta took this image of Mars as it looped through the solar system. This image was taken by an instrument on Rosetta's Philae lander just minutes before the spacecraft made its closest approach to Mars. Part of Rosetta and its solar arrays are visible. On July 10, 2010, Rosetta flew about 1,864 miles from asteroid Lutetia, which is 10 times larger than asteroid Steins. Look closely at the top of this picture. See that dot? That's Saturn. Rosetta snapped the picture of asteroid Lutetia and captured Saturn in the background. After taking pictures of Earth, Mars and asteroids, Rosetta was put into hibernation in May 2011 after it reached the outer part of the solar system. Mission managers woke it January 20, 2014.

In November, Rosetta will become the first spacecraft to deploy a robot for a soft landing on a comet. It also will be the first probe to escort a comet into our inner solar system. This drawing shows how Rosetta will drop its robot lander, Philae, onto the comet. The robot lander will fire harpoons to anchor itself to the comet. Scientists expect the lander to send back data to Earth for at least a week and possibly for many months as the comet heads toward the sun. Rosetta: The comet chaser >> Rosetta: The comet chaser It ended up in a shady spot of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, ESA said, likely without enough sunlight to keep functioning. Originally, it was supposed to have seven hours of light per comet day -- which lasts just 12.4 hours. Now it is exposed only 1.5 hours a day. That's likely not enough to juice up Philae's rechargeable secondary battery, ESA said. There is one last hope. "Mission controllers sent commands to rotate the lander's main body, to which the solar panels are fixed," ESA says in on its blog.

"This may have exposed more panel area to sunlight." Despite its walleyed positioning, Philae transmitted data and black-and-white photos back to Earth and ESA scientists. The pictures appear to indicate it landed in some sort of shadow, possibly the shadow of a cliff. Lander stable on comet's surface Race to transmit data How Philae space probe docked on comet Philae turned on its instruments, drilling for samples, and while there was still time, transferred data. Now, the lander has fallen silent. Its operators on Earth lost contact with it early Saturday. Built by a European consortium, led by the German Aerospace Research Institute, the landing probe has 10 instruments. "The lander (was) racing against the clock to meet as many of the core science goals as possible before the primary battery (was) exhausted," ESA said. Its operators are satisfied with the results, and praised Philae for completing its mission slated for the comet's surface, before it went into hibernation. Opinion: How comet mission helps in search for alien life The German space agency, which operates Philae for ESA, has taken a light-hearted approach to the battery's impending doom, putting out witty messages on a confirmed Twitter account in Philae's name .

"I'm feeling a bit tired, did you get all my data? I might take a nap," a post read. "So much hard work.. getting tired... my battery voltage is approaching the limit soon now," another read. So much hard work.. getting tired... my battery voltage is approaching the limit soon now pic.twitter.com/GHl4B8NPzm — Philae Lander (@Philae2014) November 14, 2014 It's possible that the conditions may change as the comet moves closer to the sun, making it possible to charge the secondary battery. Then Philae could awaken from its deep slumber and send data and photo surprises back to Earth, ESA said. Even with the lander out of commission, the Rosetta orbiter that carried the Philae lander will continue to transmit observations of the comet. Rosetta team celebrates landing Ten year voyage Rosetta took off from Earth 10 years ago, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket, and traveled 6.4 billion miles before rendezvousing with the comet in August. The Philae lander separated from the orbiting Rosetta about 3:30 a.m. ET Wednesday and first landed on the comet seven hours later.

The lander weighs about 220 pounds and is the size of a domestic washing machine. The target comet is only 4 kilometers, or 2.5 miles, in diameter. The spaceship is named after the Rosetta Stone , an inscribed piece of volcanic rock found in Egypt in 1799 that allowed scientists to decipher hieroglyphics and thus understand the ancient Egyptian culture, ESA said. The lander is named after an island in the Nile River where an obelisk was found that helped decipher the Rosetta Stone, ESA said. Led by ESA with a consortium of partners including NASA, scientists on the Rosetta comet-chasing mission hoped to learn more about the composition of comets and how they interact with the solar wind: high energy particles blasted into space by the sun. CNN's Ed Payne, Ashley Fantz, Fred Pleitgen and Dave Gilbert contributed to this report.

Part of complete coverage on Space ESA Science & Technology: Rosetta to deploy lander on 12 November Rosetta to deploy lander on 12 November 26 September 2014 The European Space Agency's Rosetta mission will deploy its lander, Philae, to the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on 12 November. Landing site J in Rosetta's NavCam - 21 September 2014. Credit: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM Philae's landing site, currently known as Site J, is located on the smaller of the comet's two 'lobes', with a backup site on the larger lobe. The sites were selected just six weeks after Rosetta arrived at the comet on 6 August, following its 10-year journey through the Solar System In that time, the Rosetta mission has been conducting an unprecedented scientific analysis of the comet, a remnant of the Solar System's 4.6 billion-year history. The latest results from Rosetta will be presented on the occasion of the landing, during dedicated press briefings.

The main focus to date has been to survey 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in order to prepare for the first ever attempt to soft-land on a comet. Site J was chosen unanimously over four other candidate sites as the primary landing site because the majority of terrain within a square kilometre area has slopes of less than 30° relative to the local vertical and because there are relatively few large boulders. The area also receives sufficient daily illumination to recharge Philae and continue surface science operations beyond the initial 64-hour battery-powered phase. Over the last two weeks, the flight dynamics and operations teams at ESA have been making a detailed analysis of flight trajectories and timings for Rosetta to deliver the lander at the earliest possible opportunity. Philae's descent and science on the surface. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab. (Click here for further details and larger versions of this video.) Two robust landing scenarios have been identified, one for the primary site and one for the backup. Both anticipate separation and landing on 12 November.

For the primary landing scenario, targeting Site J, Rosetta will release Philae at 08:35 GMT/09:35 CET at a distance of 22.5 km from the centre of the comet, landing about seven hours later. The one-way signal travel time between Rosetta and Earth on 12 November is 28 minutes 20 seconds, meaning that confirmation of the landing will arrive at Earth ground stations at around 16:00 GMT/17:00 CET. If a decision is made to use the backup Site C, separation will occur at 13:04 GMT/14:04 CET, 12.5 km from the centre of the comet. Landing will occur about four hours later, with confirmation on Earth at around 17:30 GMT/18:30 CET. The timings are subject to uncertainties of several minutes. Final confirmation of the primary landing site and its landing scenario will be made on 14 October after a formal Lander Operations Readiness Review, which will include the results of additional high-resolution analysis of the landing sites conducted in the meantime.

Should the backup site be chosen at this stage, landing can still occur on 12 November. A competition for the public to name the primary landing site will also be announced during the week of 14 October. Philae's primary landing site in context. Credits: ESA/Rosetta/MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/SSO/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA The Rosetta orbiter will continue to study the comet and its environment using its 11 science instruments as they orbit the Sun together. The comet is on an elliptical 6.5-year orbit that takes it from beyond Jupiter at its furthest point, to between the orbits of Mars and Earth at its closest to the Sun. Rosetta will accompany the comet for more than a year as they swing around the Sun and back to the outer Solar System again. The analyses made by the Rosetta orbiter will be complemented by the in situ measurements performed by Philae's 10 instruments. An invitation to media with an outline of the programme for the 12 November event will be issued soon. More about Rosetta Rosetta is an ESA mission with contributions from its Member States and NASA.

Rosetta's Philae lander is provided by a consortium led by DLR, MPS, CNES, and ASI. Rosetta is the first mission in history to rendezvous with a comet. It is escorting the comet as they orbit the Sun, and will deploy a lander. Comets are time capsules containing primitive material left over from the epoch when the Sun and its planets formed. By studying the gas, dust and structure of the nucleus and organic materials associated with the comet, via both remote and in situ observations, the Rosetta mission should become the key to unlocking the history and evolution of our Solar System, as well as answering questions regarding the origin of Earth's water and perhaps even life. For further information, please contact ESA Media Relations Office ESA Science & Technology: Fact Sheet At Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Orbit: En route to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Rosetta completed a complex trajectory that included four gravity assist manoeuvres (3 × Earth, 1 × Mars). The spacecraft arrived at the comet on 6 August 2014. Since then, the spacecraft has been orbiting the comet.

It will accompany the comet on its journey around the Sun. Objectives: To study the origin of comets, the relationship between cometary and interstellar material, and its implications with regard to the origin of the Solar System. The measurements to be made to achieve this are: Global characterisation of the nucleus, determination of dynamic properties, surface morphology and composition; Determination of the chemical, mineralogical and isotopic compositions of volatiles and refractories in a cometary nucleus; Determination of the physical properties and interrelation of volatiles and refractories in a cometary nucleus; Study of the development of cometary activity and the processes in the surface layer of the nucleus and the inner coma (dust/gas interaction); Global characterisation of asteroids, including determination of dynamic properties, surface morphology and composition. The International Rosetta Mission was approved in November 1993 by ESA's Science Programme Committee as the Planetary Cornerstone Mission in ESA's long-term space science programme. The mission was originally set for a rendezvous with Comet 46 P/Wirtanen. After postponement of the original launch a new target was set: Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

During its 10 year journey towards the comet, the spacecraft has passed by two asteroids: 2867 Steins (in 2008) and 21 Lutetia (in 2010). Rosetta arrived at the comet on 6 August 2014 and following deployment of the lander, Philae, on 12 November, the orbiter is accompanying the comet through perihelion and back to deep space until the mission ends in September 2016. Mission Objectives Artist's impression of Rosetta and Philae at the comet. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab; Comet image: ESA/Rosetta/NavCam Rosetta's main objective is to rendezvous with, and enter orbit around, comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and to perform observations of the comet's nucleus and coma. During the period that Rosetta orbits the comet, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko will reach perihelion (the closest point to the Sun in its orbit), allowing for the resulting increase in activity to be measured.

On 12 November, a lander named Philae was deployed and made the first soft landing on a comet. Mission Name Rosetta takes its name from the Rosetta Stone, an incomplete stela of black basalt incised with the same priestly decree concerning Ptolemy V, in three scripts. Although three scripts are shown (Egyptian Hieroglyphs, Egyptian Demotic and Greek) just two languages are represented. The great significance of the Stone is that it provided the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs. Scientists hope that the Rosetta mission will unlock the mysteries of how the Solar System evolved. Rosetta's lander Philae is named after an island in the Nile river, where archaeologists found an inscription on an obelisk that confirmed their interpretation of the Rosetta Stone texts. Spacecraft The Rosetta design is based on a box-type central structure, 2.8 m × 2.1 m × 2.0 m, on which all subsystems and payload equipment are mounted. Two solar panels, with a combined area of 64 m², each stretch out to 14 m in length. The total span from tip to tip is 32 m.

The Philae lander, measuring about 1 m × 1 m × 1 m (before deployment of its landing gear), is attached to the spacecraft side opposite to the side that carries the 2.2m diameter steerable high-gain antenna. The Rosetta orbiter (left) carries an instrument suite of 11 science instrument packages along with the Philae lander (right) which carries 10 science instrument packages. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab. The Rosetta Orbiter (11 science instrument packages) Alice Touchdown! Rosetta’s Philae probe lands on comet / Rosetta / Space Science / Our Activities / ESA Access the video Over the next 2.5 days, the lander will conduct its primary science mission, assuming that its main battery remains in good health. An extended science phase using the rechargeable secondary battery may be possible, assuming Sun illumination conditions allow and dust settling on the solar panels does not prevent it. This extended phase could last until March 2015, after which conditions inside the lander are expected to be too hot for it to continue operating.

Science highlights from the primary phase will include a full panoramic view of the landing site, including a section in 3D, high-resolution images of the surface immediately underneath the lander, on-the-spot analysis of the composition of the comet’s surface materials, and a drill that will take samples from a depth of 23 cm and feed them to an onboard laboratory for analysis. The lander will also measure the electrical and mechanical characteristics of the surface. In addition, low-frequency radio signals will be beamed between Philae and the orbiter through the nucleus to probe the internal structure. The detailed surface measurements that Philae makes at its landing site will complement and calibrate the extensive remote observations made by the orbiter covering the whole comet. “Rosetta is trying to answer the very big questions about the history of our Solar System. What were the conditions like at its infancy and how did it evolve? What role did comets play in this evolution? How do comets work?” said Matt Taylor, ESA Rosetta project scientist.

“Today’s successful landing is undoubtedly the cherry on the icing of a 4 km-wide cake, but we’re also looking further ahead and onto the next stage of this ground-breaking mission, as we continue to follow the comet around the Sun for 13 months, watching as its activity changes and its surface evolves.” While Philae begins its close-up study of the comet, Rosetta must manoeuvre from its post-separation path back into an orbit around the comet, eventually returning to a 20 km orbit on 6 December. Next year, as the comet grows more active, Rosetta will need to step further back and fly unbound ‘orbits’, but dipping in briefly with daring flybys, some of which will bring it within just 8 km of the comet centre. The comet will reach its closest distance to the Sun on 13 August 2015 at about 185 million km, roughly between the orbits of Earth and Mars. Rosetta will follow it throughout the remainder of 2015, as they head away from the Sun and activity begins to subside. “It’s been an extremely long and hard journey to reach today’s once-in-a-lifetime event, but it was absolutely worthwhile.

We look forward to the continued success of the great scientific endeavour that is the Rosetta mission as it promises to revolutionise our understanding of comets,” said Fred Jansen, ESA Rosetta mission manager. More about Rosetta Rosetta is an ESA mission with contributions from its Member States and NASA. Rosetta’s Philae lander is provided by a consortium led by DLR, MPS, CNES and ASI. Rosetta is the first mission in history to rendezvous with a comet. It is escorting the comet as they orbit the Sun together, and has deployed a lander to its surface.Comets are time capsules containing primitive material left over from the epoch when the Sun and its planets formed. By studying the gas, dust and structure of the nucleus and organic materials associated with the comet, via both remote and in situ observations, the Rosetta mission should become the key to unlocking the history and evolution of our Solar System. About the European Space Agency The European Space Agency (ESA) provides Europe’s gateway to space. ESA is an intergovernmental organisation, created in 1975, with the mission to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space delivers benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.

ESA has 20 Member States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxem-bourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, of whom 18 are Member States of the EU. Two other Member States of the EU, Hungary and Estonia, are likely soon to become new ESA Member States. ESA has Cooperation Agreements with six other Member States of the EU. Canada takes part in some ESA programmes under a Cooperation Agreement. ESA is also working with the EU on implementing the Galileo and Copernicus programmes. By coordinating the financial and intellectual resources of its members, ESA can undertake programmes and activities far beyond the scope of any single European country. ESA develops the launchers, spacecraft and ground facilities needed to keep Europe at the forefront of global space activities. Today, it develops and launches satellites for Earth observation, naviga-tion, telecommunications and astronomy, sends probes to the far reaches of the Solar System and cooperates in the human exploration of space.

Learn more about ESA at For further information, please contact: ESA Media Relations Office ESA comet lander, Philae, runs out of power | kplr11.com ESA comet lander, Philae, runs out of power Posted 12:48 pm, November 15, 2014, by CNN Wires Email This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. (CNN) — After an improbable 10-year, 310-million-mile journey to become the first ever space vehicle to make a soft landing on a comet, the Philae probe may have ended its mission prematurely. Its batteries have run down, said the European Space Agency. “Philae has fallen into ‘idle mode’ for a potentially long silence. In this mode, all instruments and most systems on board are shut down,” ESA said. This might not change. Philae was supposed to transmit data from Comet 67/P for nine months as it passed the sun, running on solar power, but it did not get its place in the sunlight that scientists had hoped for.

Bounce landing The probe’s landing didn’t go as planned this week, after Philae detached from the Rosetta orbiter. It took two bounces away from its designated landing spot, and never fired its anchoring harpoon. “The lander remains unanchored to the surface at an as yet undetermined orientation,” ESA said. It ended up in a shady spot of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, ESA said, likely without enough sunlight to keep functioning. Originally, it was supposed to have seven hours of light per comet day — which lasts just 12.4 hours. Now it is exposed only 1.5 hours a day. That’s likely not enough to juice up Philae’s rechargeable secondary battery, ESA said. There is one last hope. “Mission controllers sent commands to rotate the lander’s main body, to which the solar panels are fixed,” ESA says in on its blog. “This may have exposed more panel area to sunlight.” Despite its walleyed positioning, Philae transmitted data and black-and-white photos back to Earth and ESA scientists. The pictures appear to indicate it landed in some sort of shadow, possibly the shadow of a cliff.

Race to transmit data Philae turned on its instruments, drilling for samples, and while there was still time, transferred data. Now, the lander has fallen silent. Its operators on Earth lost contact with it early Saturday. Built by a European consortium, led by the German Aerospace Research Institute, the landing probe has nine experiments. “The lander (was) racing against the clock to meet as many of the core science goals as possible before the primary battery (was) exhausted,” ESA said. Its operators are satisfied with the results, and praised Philae for completing its mission slated for the comet’s surface, before it went into hibernation. The German space agency, which operates Philae for ESA, has taken a light-hearted approach to the battery’s impending doom, putting out witty messages on a confirmed Twitter account in Philae’s name. “I’m feeling a bit tired, did you get all my data? I might take a nap,” a post read. “So much hard work.. getting tired… my battery voltage is approaching the limit soon now,” another read. It’s possible that the conditions may change as the comet moves closer to the sun, making it possible to charge the secondary battery.

Then Philae could awaken from its deep slumber and send data and photo surprises back to Earth, ESA said. Even with the lander out of commission, the Rosetta orbiter that carried the Philae lander will continue to transmit observations of the comet. Ten year voyage Rosetta took off from Earth 10 years ago, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket, and traveled 6.4 billion miles before rendezvousing with the comet in August. The Philae lander separated from the orbiting Rosetta about 3:30 a.m. ET Wednesday and first landed on the comet seven hours later. The lander weighs about 220 pounds and is the size of a domestic washing machine. The target comet is only 4 kilometers, or 2.5 miles, in diameter. The spaceship is named after the Rosetta Stone, an inscribed piece of volcanic rock found in Egypt in 1799 that allowed scientists to decipher hieroglyphics and thus understand the ancient Egyptian culture, ESA said. The lander is named after an island in the Nile River where an obelisk was found that helped decipher the Rosetta Stone, ESA said.

Led by ESA with a consortium of partners including NASA, scientists on the Rosetta comet-chasing mission hoped to learn more about the composition of comets and how they interact with the solar wind: high energy particles blasted into space by the sun. TM & © 2014 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved. On a Comet 10 years Away, Philae Conks Out, Maybe for Good | KTLA On a Comet 10 years Away, Philae Conks Out, Maybe for Good Posted 6:56 AM, November 15, 2014, by CNN Wire , Updated at 06:57AM, November 15, 2014 Share this: Email This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. After an improbable 10-year, 310-million-mile journey to become the first ever space vehicle to make a soft landing on a comet, the Philae probe may have ended its mission prematurely.

Rosetta’s lander Philae landed safely on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, as these first two CIVA images confirmed on Nov. 13, 2014. (Credit: ESA/Rosetta/Philae/CIVA) Its batteries have run down, said the European Space Agency. “Philae has fallen into ‘idle mode’ for a potentially long silence. In this mode, all instruments and most systems on board are shut down,” ESA said. This might not change. Philae was supposed to transmit data from Comet 67/P for nine months as it passed the sun, running on solar power, but it did not get its place in the sunlight that scientists had hoped for. Bounce landing The probe’s landing didn’t go as planned this week, after Philae detached from the Rosetta orbiter. It took two bounces away from its designated landing spot, and never fired its anchoring harpoon. “The lander remains unanchored to the surface at an as yet undetermined orientation,” ESA said.

It ended up in a shady spot of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, ESA said, likely without enough sunlight to keep functioning. Originally, it was supposed to have seven hours of light per comet day — which lasts just 12.4 hours. Now it is exposed only 1.5 hours a day. That’s likely not enough to juice up Philae’s rechargeable secondary battery, ESA said. There is one last hope. “Mission controllers sent commands to rotate the lander’s main body, to which the solar panels are fixed,” ESA says in on its blog. “This may have exposed more panel area to sunlight.” Despite its walleyed positioning, Philae transmitted data and black-and-white photos back to Earth and ESA scientists. The pictures appear to indicate it landed in some sort of shadow, possibly the shadow of a cliff. Race to transmit data Philae turned on its instruments, drilling for samples, and while there was still time, transferred data. Now, the lander has fallen silent. Its operators on Earth lost contact with it early Saturday. Built by a European consortium, led by the German Aerospace Research Institute, the landing probe has nine experiments.

“The lander (was) racing against the clock to meet as many of the core science goals as possible before the primary battery (was) exhausted,” ESA said. The German space agency, which operates Philae for ESA, has taken a light-hearted approach to the battery’s impending doom, putting out witty messages on a confirmed Twitter account in Philae’s name. “I’m feeling a bit tired, did you get all my data? I might take a nap,” a post read. “So much hard work.. getting tired… my battery voltage is approaching the limit soon now,” another read. It’s possible that the conditions may change as the comet moves closer to the sun, making it possible to charge the secondary battery. Then Philae could awaken from its deep slumber and send data and photo surprises back to Earth, ESA said. Even with the lander out of commission, the Rosetta orbiter that carried the Philae lander will continue to transmit observations of the comet. Ten year voyage Rosetta took off from Earth 10 years ago, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket, and traveled 6.4 billion miles before rendezvousing with the comet in August.

The Philae lander separated from the orbiting Rosetta about 3:30 a.m. ET Wednesday and first landed on the comet seven hours later. The lander weighs about 220 pounds and is the size of a domestic washing machine. The target comet is only 4 kilometers, or 2.5 miles, in diameter. The spaceship is named after the Rosetta Stone, an inscribed piece of volcanic rock found in Egypt in 1799 that allowed scientists to decipher hieroglyphics and thus understand the ancient Egyptian culture, ESA said. The lander is named after an island in the Nile River where an obelisk was found that helped decipher the Rosetta Stone, ESA said. Led by ESA with a consortium of partners including NASA, scientists on the Rosetta comet-chasing mission hoped to learn more about the composition of comets and how they interact with the solar wind: high energy particles blasted into space by the sun.

Rosetta Mission: History Made as Philae Probe Successfully Lands on Comet’s Surface | KTLA Severe weather alert Rosetta Mission: History Made as Philae Probe Successfully Lands on Comet’s Surface Posted 4:24 AM, November 12, 2014, by CNN Wire , Eric Spillman , Christina Pascucci , Jim Castillo and Rick Chambers , Updated at 10:58PM, November 12, 2014 Share this: Email This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. History could be made on Nov. 12, 2014, if a spacecraft lands on a comet. (Credit: European Space Agency) The comet probe Philae may have bounced when it landed, the European Space Agency (ESA) said Wednesday. It is the first time a soft landing has been achieved on a comet -- but there was a hitch. Comet 67P has a very weak gravity, so anchoring harpoons were designed to shoot into the comet to fix the spacecraft to the surface. They failed to fire and Philae is not firmly secure, ESA says.

Philae lander manager Stephan Ulamec said the probe may have lifted off again and turned. "So maybe we didn't land once -- we landed twice," he told a news conference. "Did we land in a soft sand box or is there something else happening? We don't fully understand what happened," he said. Ulamec said scientists remain upbeat as they are still receiving data from the spacecraft and they hope to learn more Thursday. Shortly after landing was confirmed, the probe tweeted: "Touchdown! My new address: 67P!" Later, it tweeted again: "I'm on the surface but my harpoons did not fire." Led by ESA with a consortium of partners including NASA, scientists on the Rosetta comet-chasing mission hope to learn more about the composition of comets and how they interact with the solar wind -- high energy particles blasted into space by the sun. Speaking to CNN shortly after the landing, ESA lander system engineer Laurence O'Rourke said they were trying to check the orientation of the craft, to see "how we landed and where we landed." "We are extremely happy," he said. "To get the signal it had touched the surface was a major achievement -- it was quite extraordinary.

Philae is already taking measurements, sniffing the comet." He also said the probe could start drilling into the surface and analyzing the material as soon as Thursday. The comet is currently 500 million kilometers (310 million miles) from Earth and pictures from the Rosetta mission to track it on its orbit around the sun have amazed scientists. NASA's chief scientist, Ellen Stofan, told CNN: "That comet is the most bizarre, wonderful thing I have ever seen. Those images have just blown me away. Philae was such a huge success before it even did anything, so kudos to ESA and the scientific community. "No one has ever gotten data like Rosetta has gotten. No one has ever been able to land on a comet the way Philae just did." Astronomer Robert Massey also called the landing a tremendous achievement. "A comet is a bit like a time capsule, which is why it's special," he told CNN. "It's an insight into the composition of the early solar system -- the ratio of chemicals. "Even without Philae, we still have Rosetta in orbit around a comet, giving the ability to watch it at close quarters. There will be a lot of science from this," he said.

Weighing in at 220 pounds, it might be the size of a domestic washing machine but Philae is considerably smarter. It is equipped with an array of experiments to photograph and test the surface of Comet 67P as well as finding out what happens when the roasting effect of the sun drives off gas and dust. Built by a European consortium, led by the German Aerospace Research Institute (DLR), the landing probe has nine experiments. According to details on ESA's Rosetta website, sensors on the lander will measure the density and thermal properties of the surface, gas analyzers will help to detect and identify any complex organic chemicals that might be present, while other tests will measure the magnetic field and interaction between the comet and solar wind. Philae also carries a drill that can drive 20 centimeters (8 inches) into the comet and deliver material to its on-board ovens for testing. Scientists are already pleased with progress of the mission.

ESA project scientist Matt Taylor said: "The orbiter will remain alongside the comet for over a year, watching it grow in activity as it approaches the sun, getting to within 180 million kilometers (112 million miles) in summer next year, when the comet will be expelling hundreds of kilograms of material every second. "It's got an awesome profile -- the adventure of the decade-long journey necessary to capture its prey, flying past the Earth, Mars and two asteroids on the way," he said. Daniel Brown, an astronomy expert at Nottingham Trent University in the UK, said: "Although we have landed on planets, moons and asteroids, it has never been attempted for a nucleus of a comet -- and with good reason. These objects have a very low gravity, are loosely composed of ice, dust and rocks, and are very irregular in shape. They are temperamental in their behavior and notoriously difficult to predict. "Comets such as 67P have already been exposed to the intense heat of the sun in their past orbits, resulting in their surface being altered, but going beneath the surface will give us an insight into unchanged material, allowing us to peak into the chemical composition of our early solar system.

"Apart from the amazing scientific results, the sheer challenge and ambition of such a mission is outstanding and illustrates how our space exploration of the solar system has become more advanced and successful. It gives us much to hope for in future missions." And science fiction writer Alastair Reynolds said: "This is science fiction made real in terms of the achievement of the mission itself, but Rosetta is also taking us a step closer to answering science fiction's grandest question of all: Are we alone?" Soon it will be time to part ways! RT @ESA_Rosetta : Final Go/NOGO complete! We're GO for separation!!! pic.twitter.com/cdRec5ie46

Question: In November 2014, a European Space consortium succeeded in landing a vehicle on a comet after a 10 year journey. What was the name of the mission?
Answer: Rosetta